Sugar and Spice
by Floriessence
Summary: Marui gets the chance of a lifetime when he is asked to help at his favorite bakery for a week. He gets along well with the owner's children, but working at the bakery changes his life in a way he never anticipated, especially when Josei Shonan's Kajimoto is involved.
1. Chapter 1

**[** Sugar and Spice - Chapter 1]

"Bunta, where are you going?"

15-year-old Marui Bunta was just running out the front door when his mother, Marui Sawa, called after him. He was up earlier than usual, considering it was the first day of vacation. It was 7AM on a Saturday. For the young man, that meant going to his temporary part-time job at the local bakery.

Biting onto a half-eaten piece of toast, Marui yelled over his shoulder, "To Aizawa-san's bakery! I'm helping him with the store while he's gone this week."

"Okay, don't stay out too late!" his mom called. With a large smile and thumbs up, the boy left.

* * *

"Am I doing this right, Satoshi-san?" Marui asked. He was whisking egg whites in a mixing bowl. 18-year-old Aizawa Satoshi, a tall and lean brunette, looked up from where he was taking out a steaming tray of egg tarts from the oven and gave the young man a nod of approval.

"Yeah, you're doing great. Can you help me lay out these tarts inside the glass case out front? Oh, but don't sneak any of them. I know how you think." Satoshi chuckled and looked at the younger man with a teasing twinkle in his eye.

"Darn it, you caught me." Marui laughed as he quickly took his hand away from the egg tarts. At Satoshi's instruction, the redhead stopped whisking eggs and picked up the tray of tarts. He left the kitchen and began organizing the pastries inside a glass display case next to the register.

Aizawa Bakery always had delicious treats, and Marui had quickly become a regular customer. The bakery always smelled and looked amazing, the mouth-watering concoction of sugar and baked bread wafting throughout the building and spilling out onto the streets.

When the owner, Satoshi's father, was asked to speak at a weeklong patisserie convention in France, Marui was naturally asked to help around the store. The redhead had readily agreed. Now here was a chance to learn the trade and eat as many sweets as he wanted!

As soon as he placed the last egg tart in the display case, the bell over the front door tinkered. Marui's ears perked and he immediately looked up to see a girl around his age enter the bakery. He smirked. Blue eyes met violet.

The girl was petite, barely reaching Marui's shoulder, and her black hair was tied in a high ponytail with a blue ribbon. She was wearing the bakery's uniform: white short-sleeved blouse, black vest, and pleated black skirt.

Marui grabbed something from behind the counter and threw it to her. The girl raised her right hand and caught the item easily. She opened her fist to find a nametag.

"Aya-chan, you're late." Marui put his hands on his hips and gave the girl a mocking look. Aya raised an eyebrow, amused.

"Satoshi-nii didn't wake me up today. I blame him."

Hearing his name, Satoshi peeked out of the kitchen, Marui's whisk and bowl in hand. He grinned.

"You were sleeping so peacefully that I didn't have the heart in me to wake you up."

Aya stuck her tongue out at him and pinned her nametag to her blouse. The nametag read: Aizawa Aya. "Well, what's important is that I'm here now. Sorry again for being late. What's there left to do?"

Satoshi looked thoughtful as he continued to whisk the eggs. "Most of it is done. We just need to decorate. That's your specialty so I didn't touch anything. Can you do those for me and help Marui-kun organize the pastries?"

Aya rolled up invisible sleeves and smiled. "Of course, that's what I'm here to do. Let's go!"

She cheerfully entered the kitchen and headed to a table covered with trays of freshly baked goods. She picked up a tube of pink frosting from the many others laid out in front of her and got to work.

* * *

Aya hummed as she made a calico cat design on a cupcake, and in no time at all, a dozen cupcakes were completed and set aside. After helping her father around the bakery for the past seven years, Aya worked fast, and when she entered her work zone, nothing could interrupt her.

So she didn't notice when Marui snuck up behind her to watch her work. Aya was putting the finishing touches on an intricate floral design when Marui spoke, albeit much too close to her ear. "Mhmm…tres bien!"

Aya's reaction was immediate. She jumped, yanking her frosting away because she was worried that her masterpiece would be ruined. She turned to look at Marui, pouting. He was only mere inches away from her face. She waved her frosting in front of him in an attempt to create some distance.

"Too close, too close! Marui-kun! I almost made a mistake."

"Even if you make a mistake, the cakes are still delicious. Can I have one?" Marui reached around Aya to grab a cupcake but the girl gently batted his hand away.

"I'm flattered but these are for the customers." She smiled softly when she saw Marui's face drop in disappointment. "I'll make you something after your shift is done," she promised. In that instant, the redhead's face glowed like a kid's on Halloween.

"You promise?"

"I promise. Now, go flip the sign so people know we're open." Marui jumped for joy and ran out the kitchen. Aya chuckled. She carefully picked up a tray of cupcakes and followed him.

* * *

Work went by quickly. Aizawa Bakery was well known to the locals, and many of the townspeople stopped by to pick up at least one of the many handmade, daily sweets and pastries. In no time at all, the clock struck 3, signaling the end of the morning shift.

"Here you go, ma'am. Half-dozen strawberry cream doughnuts." Aya smiled brightly and handed a white box to a young woman. Her daughter held her free hand. The child looked at the box, eyes wide open in awe. "Thank you, please come again!" Aya waved as the mother and daughter left the store. Marui stretched next to her behind the counter and looked at the clock on the wall.

"Ah, we were so swamped today; I feel like a whirlwind just passed."

Aya looked at the clock. "Oh! It's already 3. I didn't realize how fast the time went. You're free to leave whenever you feel, Marui-kun."

Marui looked at Aya questioningly. "You're not leaving yet?"

Seeing that there were no customers in the store, Aya moved towards the kitchen. "It's only me and my brother today so I need to stay back and help close. We're closing earlier this week until dad comes back." She reached up to adjust her hair and smiled at the redhead over her shoulder. "You should enjoy the rest of your day though. And I did promise you some sweets this morning so let me just make that for you. What do you want?"

Marui's eyes sparkled. "Raspberry pie!"

Aya laughed. "Alright, one raspberry pie coming right up." She disappeared into the kitchen.

While he waited, Marui sat on a stool and swung his legs. He looked around at the empty store and peeked at the kitchen. Aya was taking out a pie from the oven. The delicious smell of raspberries permeated past the kitchen and throughout the store.

Marui licked his lips. Saying that he was excited was a huge understatement. He was getting free pie. Free. Pie. Nothing could beat that. Oh, how happy he was to be working in a bakery, even if it was just for a week.

His thoughts led to daydreams about cake. Strawberry shortcake. Chocolate dulce. Double chocolate fudge. Coconut crème. Raspberry tart. His stream of consciousness went on and on until a white box was thrust in front of him.

"One raspberry pie for you, sir."

The redhead snapped out of his thoughts. He looked at the box Aya was holding and took it carefully, as if it were a sacred artifact. "Thank you, Aya-chan! You're the best." Marui opened the box and his eyes went wide. "Huh? There's an entire pie in here."

"Take the whole thing. I did promise." Aya chuckled. "And you really saved us today. Thanks again for agreeing to help out this week. I know you just started vacation."

Marui grinned and held up his box. "Don't mind, don't mind. Your dad makes the best cakes so I'm always happy to help."

"Morning shift tomorrow, right?"

Marui nodded. "Yeah. Don't sleep in again, sleepyhead." He ruffled Aya's hair. She looked unamused.

"Hey, I'm just not a morning person," she grumbled.

Marui laughed. "Whatever you say. See ya!" With that, the redhead ran out the door, hugging the pie box to his body like his life depended on it.

Aya shook her head. "That Marui-kun. Ah! Now my hair's ruined." She reached up to fix her hair. Once she was satisfied, Aya went back to the kitchen. She clapped her hands. "Back to work now, Aya. Back to work."

Satoshi was waiting for her just inside. He grinned. Aya looked at him questioningly.

"What is it?" Satoshi ruffled her hair instead of answering. His sister pouted and pushed his hand away. "Satoshi-nii! I just fixed my hair."

"I was just thinking that my chibi-hime is all grown up."

"Huh?"

"Don't mind, don't mind." Satoshi began putting empty trays in the sink. Aya just stared at him, confused. Just then, the front door bell tinkered. Satoshi nodded his head towards the register.

"Customer, chibi-hime."

"I got it!" Aya ran out the kitchen. Satoshi smiled fondly, but then it faltered.

"It can't be, can it? Must be my imagination."


	2. Chapter 2

[Sugar and Spice - Chapter 2]

Aya put away the last of the trays on the drying rack. She wiped her hands on a small towel and stretched her arms over her head. She looked around the kitchen. She was done mopping and sweeping, and the dishes were clean. Satoshi had thrown away the trash and made new batches of dough for the pastries the next day. She looked at the clock. It was 6:30PM. For the week her father was gone, the bakery would be closing at 7PM rather than 9PM. Aya looked at her handiwork, satisfied. It was almost time to leave.

She was contemplating double-checking her work when she heard a bell. Customers this late? Aya left the kitchen and was met with a familiar face: a familiar, devilishly handsome face that she saw almost every day. Oh, right! There was a cake for pick-up that day. How could she forget?

Aya gave the customer a knowing smile before disappearing into the kitchen and returning promptly with a massive, white box. It looked heavy. Not just looked, it _was_. The box was easily a couple pounds.

"Here you go, Kajimoto-kun!" Aya handed the box to him. The tall brunette quickly took it from her, noticing how she was struggling. Aya shot him a look of gratitude. "Thank you." Why on earth her school's tennis team felt the need for a three-story cake, she would never know. "I'm honestly surprised that you're here; I was expecting the twins to pick up the cake instead."

Kajimoto adjusted the box in his hands. "They are busy decorating. I was the only one who could make the trip."

' _Didn't you just use that as an excuse to escape?'_ She thought, chuckling to herself. "Decorating? Is there an event today?" Kajimoto gave her a blank look and shook his head.

"Today is Hanamura-sensei's birthday. " Aya's eyes widened as realization hit.

"Oh! Everything makes sense now." She grinned. "I was wondering why Shinjo-kun was giving me such minute details about the cake. I probably went through about a dozen sketches with him until he finally settled on something."

Kajimoto gave a curt nod. "His pursuits seem to be in vain." Aya shook her head.

"No, I get the feeling that Hanamura-sensei knows." She tapped her head with her pointer finger. "Women are very perceptive about these things. Shinjo-kun likes her so much that anyone would know."

Kajimoto looked thoughtful for a second and then turned to look at the clock. "I must be heading out. My teammates are waiting."

Aya's eyes followed his to the clock. "Right! I'm sorry for keeping you."

Kajimoto gave a curt nod. "Not a problem. Then I'll be going. Have a good day, Aizawa-san." The boy turned around to leave when Satoshi appeared from the kitchen. He was carrying a tray of the leftover pastries from the day.

"Chibi-hime, I brought the leftovers. Want to take them home?" Satoshi then noticed Kajimoto at the door. "Your friend?" Kajimoto stopped and turned back to the siblings.

"My classmate," Aya explained. "It's his tennis coach's birthday today so his team is throwing a party. Kajimoto-kun, this is my older brother Satoshi."

Kajimoto bowed. "I am Kajimoto Takahisa. It is nice to meet you."

Satoshi nodded. "Likewise."

Aya looked at the leftovers on her brother's tray, thinking gears turning furiously. If she and her brother took them home, they would be eating nothing but bread for the next week, which was fine, but she would get tired of it after a while. Just then, a light went off in her head. She looked at her brother.

"Satoshi-nii, I have an idea." She then turned to her classmate. "Kajimoto-kun, why don't you take these pastries with you too? You can have them at the party and anything left over could be distributed with your teammates." She grinned. "I'm sure they wouldn't pass up free food."

Kajimoto stared at her and then at the box in his hands. He could carry it with ease but trying to carry a bag of pastries at the same time was another story. "Thank you for the generous offer, but I couldn't possibly—"

"—If you need a hand, I could help you carry them," Aya interrupted. "Hold on, let me grab a bag." She ran into the kitchen.

Satoshi's smile faltered. The thought of his little sister walking alone at night with a handsome boy sent off warning signals in his head. "Chibi-hime, I don't think that's a good idea," he called to her. "You'll have to walk back alone, and it'll get late…"

Aya returned with a brown paper bag. "Oh, Satoshi-nii. I'll be fine! You don't want to eat bread for a week, right? I'll just deliver the pastries and come right back. It'll be safe. Right, Kajimoto-kun?"

Kajimoto looked from her to Satoshi. He saw the silent warning in the older boy's eyes. What to do…he looked back at Aya and saw how eager she was. He sighed. Such a simple girl.

"I suppose so," he said slowly. "I will escort her to and from the party," he added, giving Satoshi a level look. Aya beamed and started packing the leftover pastries. When she was done, she went to stand by her classmate. Satoshi smiled and put a hand on Kajimoto's shoulder. The younger boy noticed how firm Satoshi's grip was. He decided to ignore it.

"I am counting on you, Kajimoto-kun," Satoshi said. His grip tightened.

Kajimoto stood unflinchingly. He wasn't going to back down. He nodded. "She will be safe with me."

"Great!" Satoshi let go and turned to his sister. "Don't worry about the store. We're done closing so just come home. Don't stay out too late."

"I know. Come on, Kajimoto-kun! Let's get going." Aya tugged gently on Kajimoto's jacket, leading him to the door. Kajimoto turned to give Satoshi one last look before following his classmate out of the bakery.

* * *

"Kajimoto-kun."

Kajimoto looked at his classmate questioningly. The two had been silently walking through town. Aya didn't mind the silence. She wasn't close to Kajimoto anyway, and the only reason she had wanted to come along was so the leftovers wouldn't be wasted. But now, she felt a sudden need to break the tension.

"Yes, Aizawa-san?"

Aya paused. Maybe it had been better for her not to say anything? As Kajimoto continued to watch her, waiting for her answer, she asked carefully, "What made you start tennis?"

Kajimoto turned away from her and looked on ahead. The two continued to walk in silence. Aya looked at her feet, questioning herself again for the umpteenth time if she had said anything wrong when Kajimoto answered, "I wanted to reach the top."

Aya immediately looked up at him, curiosity peaked. "Reach the top?"

Kajimoto nodded. "I wanted to defeat powerful players and see how far my limits were." His eyes held fiery determination. Aya was awed. The challenging look in his eyes gave him a strong presence that was hard to find in her fellow peers.

"But why tennis?"

"Tennis challenges you both mentally and physically," Kajimoto explained. "I played when I was younger and enjoyed breaking my records and setting them higher. It has made me a better person."

"Do you plan to go pro?"

The two rounded a corner. They were almost at the party venue. As school was out for the summer, the tennis team decided to have the party at a local tennis court. Kajimoto was silent. Aya looked at him, waiting expectantly.

"I am unsure," he finally answered. "Right now I only have tennis, and unless I have a new dream, it will stay that way."

Aya thought over Kajimoto's answer. She knew how serious the tennis club members were about the sport. Hearing the captain tell her himself just how much he cared about tennis was admirable, maybe even cute. She began to wonder if she would ever have such passion for something. She had, but that was something she had locked away long ago.

"We are here."

Aya snapped back to reality. She and Kajimoto stood in front of the local tennis courts. She could hear the voices of the rest of Josei Shonan's tennis team in the distance. "You're right. I'm sorry, I was zoning out."

Kajimoto's usual stern gaze softened. He lowered his voice. "Are you ok?"

Aya nodded, smiling for reassurance. "Yes, I am fine."

Kajimoto studied her silently. "Follow me. You can drop off the bag inside."

Aya shook her head. "Oh no, I shouldn't. I should head back before my brother starts to get worried."

"I cannot carry that bag, Aizawa-san. My hands are full." Aya didn't answer. "And I made a promise to your brother to walk you home," Kajimoto added.

Aya knew she was defeated. "Lead the way."

* * *

"The cake is here!" Tanaka Yohei yelled. He ran to his captain.

Yohei's twin brother Kohei looked up from where he was painting a 'Happy Birthday' sign. "Really? Let's see it!" He dropped his paintbrush and followed right behind his brother. The two took the heavy box from their captain.

"Be careful. It's heavy," Kajimoto said plainly.

"We know. Whoa, this _is_ heavy." Yohei almost dropped his side of the box but caught himself just in time.

"Just how big did Shinjo-kun make the cake?" Kohei asked, surprised. He jumped when someone behind him plucked the box from his hands. The twins looked up to see Shinjo Reiji peering down at them.

"I will carry the cake," he said flatly. The twins nodded. They weren't about to argue with him, especially when it came to things pertaining to their coach.

While this exchange was taking place, Aya looked at the party decorations. The boys had done a great job. Colorful banners were strung along the walls and tables were set up at the center of the court with food and drinks. Balloons were attached to buckets full of tennis balls and gifts were piled in one corner of the court. The chair at the head of the table was covered with red cloth while the rest were teal.

"This looks amazing," she said. Her voice caught the attention of the twins and Shinjo and they looked at her as if they had just realized she was present.

"Aizawa-san, thank you for the cake." Shinjo said, taking the box to the center of the table and opening it. A tiny flicker of a smile crossed his face as he took out the cake. "I see no fault."

Aya beamed. "My pleasure, Shinjo-kun. I'm glad you like it, and I'm sure Hanamura-sensei will too." The tips of Shinjo's ears turned red. Aya giggled. His crush on Hanamura-sensei was adorable. Too bad nothing was coming out of it, yet.

From the opposite side of the court, Wakato Hiroshi walked over to the group in his usual confident stride. "What's in the bag, Aizawa-chan?" he asked. He winked at Aya. "Did you come to see me?" The girl chuckled and brushed the question aside.

"They're pastries that we had left over from work today," she explained. "They're still fresh so I thought I would contribute them to the party."

Wakato shrugged. "It's still baffling how you can resist me." Aya smiled and handed him the bag. Wakato took it, letting the twins peek inside.

"That's because I know your flare is mostly for show," Aya replied. "You are certainly charming, but I know that there is more to you than that."

Wakato grinned. "I guess I can't get past you."

"Why don't you join us, Aizawa-senpai?" Yohei asked. He took out a strawberry jelly doughnut and took a bite. He looked like he was in heaven.

"Right, you came all this way," Kohei chipped in. He gave a quick glance at his captain.

Aya shook her head. "Thank you for the offer, but I should be heading home soon. I just came to deliver the pastries. Kajimoto-kun had his hands full with the cake."

"Speaking of cake, I thought Shinjo was picking it up," Wakato noted. Kajimoto shot him a look, quickly quieting him.

"Right, well, I should get going," Aya said. She waved and turned around to leave the court. "Have fun!"

The boys watched her go. Shinjo looked at his captain. "Kajimoto."

Kajimoto closed his eyes. "I know." He walked briskly after Aya.

* * *

"Aizawa-san."

Aya stopped and turned around at the voice. "Kajimoto-kun, you should go back to the party!"

"We are almost done with preparations," Kajimoto said. The tone in his voice made Aya aware that she shouldn't argue. "I made a promise to your brother. I intend to keep it."

"It's not a big deal, really. I can take care of myself," Aya replied. "It's not that late. You're the captain. You should be with everybody else."

"I will take you home." Kajimoto's tone was firm.

Aya shook her head. "That's fine, Kajimoto-kun. Really."

Kajimoto was feeling his patience crack. She was being unnecessarily stubborn. "I insist."

"I—" Aya started.

"Please." Kajimoto's voice dropped. Aya looked at the floor.

"Okay. I'm sorry Kajimoto-kun. I just wanted you to enjoy yourself more with your team."

Kajimoto's expression softened. Was he too hard on her? "I appreciate the sentiment, Aizawa-san. But please let me do this one thing. It is not a big deal to me."

Aya smiled. "Let's go before it gets even darker then."

The two left the tennis courts.

* * *

From the opposite side of the street, Marui was walking towards the local tennis courts with his youngest teammate Kirihara Akaya. Both had tennis bags slung over their shoulders.

"Marui-senpai, why did you want to come to the courts this late?" Kirihara asked. Marui threw his arm around the younger boy's shoulders.

"I've been in Aizawa-san's bakery for most of the day," the redhead explained. He grinned. "I need to keep up with training and what better way is there than to practice with my favorite kouhai?" Marui ruffled Kirihara's hair. Kirihara protested and tried to break free but to no avail. "Plus you had some of my pie," Marui added slyly.

"B-b-but," Kirihara sputtered. "You offered!"

Marui let go of Kirihara and looked away. He whistled nonchalantly. "I did? I don't remember."

Kirihara sighed, and then grinned cheekily. "I'm always up to practice though! I bet I can beat you in fifteen minutes." Marui grabbed Kirihara again and ruffled his hair, much harder this time.

"You're ten years too early to defeat me," he said. He suddenly stopped. Kirihara stopped struggling and followed the redhead's gaze.

Two people were walking together. One was Josei Shonan's Kajimoto and the other was a girl he was unfamiliar with.

"Isn't that Josei Shonan's Kajimoto-san?" Kirihara asked. "Who's the girl with him? Ah!" His eyes widened. "Maybe it's his girlfriend!"

Marui shook his head. "No, that's Aya-chan from Aizawa Bakery. She's my coworker."

Kirihara's face fell. "I see…why is Kajimoto-san with her?"

Marui shrugged. "Beats me," he replied. He gave the two one last look before pulling Kirihara towards the tennis courts. "Let's go." The younger boy complied and followed him. If Marui had looked at the two one last time, he would have seen Kajimoto looking right back at him.


End file.
